Telephone coin collector with pile-up leveling means



April 4, 1950 o. A. SCHANN 2,502,999

TELEPHONE com OLLECTOR wrm FILE-UP uavsunc; MEANS Filed Dec. 22, 1947 2Sheets-Sheet 1 H611. I H6112. [iii/$5 f k. kill/I 'lllilii &

INVENTOR 0.14. SHAA/N 2 %/a C2 MM AT TORNEV April 4, 1950 o. A. SHANN2,502,999

TELEPHONE COIN COLLECTOR WITH FILE-UP LEVELING MEANS INVENTOR O A SHANNAT TORNEV Patented Apr. 4,1950

PILE-UP LEVELING Oscar A. Shann, Short Hills, N. 3., assignor to BellTelephone Laboratories, Incorporated, New York, N. Y., a corporation ofNew York Application December 22, 1947, Serial No. 793,104

Claims.

This invention relates to coin collector apparatus and more particularlyto telephone coin collectors of the type in which coins inserted in theapparatus are directed into a coin box.

The object of the invention is to provide improved means for preventingundue piling up of coins in the coin box.

A feature of the invention resides in a movable member mounted in thecoin box and operable to move coins in the coin box when the coins pileup in the form of a peak or mound in the coin box.

Another feature resides in a lever system for operating the movablemember in the coin box.

Another feature resides in an electrical switch to control an electricalalarm system.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of a telephone coin collectorapparatus in which the invention is used;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view, partly in section, of the telephone coincollector shown in Fig. 1 with portions removed and showing theinvention;

Fig. 3 is a view, partly in section, of a portion of the apparatus andtaken on the line 3-3 in F18. 2;

Fig. 4 is a view, partly in section, of a portion of the apparatus andtaken on the line 4-4 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a view, partly in section, of a portion of the apparatus andtaken on the line 5-5 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged view, partly in section, of portions of a casingand a coin box and showing the movable member and certain other parts ofthe invention and with the movable member engaging coins in the coinbox;

Fig. '7 is a view corresponding in general to the view shown in Fig. 6but with the movable member held against movement by coins and with theswitch closed; and

'Fig. 8 is a side view, partly in section, of the apparatus shown inFig. 2.

In telephone coin collectors of the type shown in Fig. l and which maybe constructed along the general lines of the coin collector shown inthe O. F. Forsberg, United States Patent 1,043,219 a coin box isprovided to receive the coins collected for telephone service rendered.When a coin is deposited in the coin collector apparatus the coin fallsby gravity through a coin chute and into a hopper to strike a triggerand then pass to a coin trap. The trap is operated by means controlledfrom a central station to collect or refund the coin according to theservice rendered.

(Cl. its-6.3)

When the trap is operated to collect the coin, the coin falls through anaperture in the coin box and into the coin box. Since coins coming intothe coin box have to pass through a single aperture in the top of thecoin box the coins received have a tendency to pile up in the coin boxand in some cases to such an extent that the top of the pile of coinsblocks the entrance to the coin box and prevents subsequently depositedcoins from going through the apparatus as required.

In the present invention a movable member is provided in the coin box toengage the upper portio of a pile of coins and move the coins to other 1ions in the coin box so thatthe openhis in the coin box will not beobstructed. Means are provided to move the movable member in the coinbox each time a telephone receiver is placed on its switchhook. Anelectrical switch is also provided to close a circuit including an alarmdevice when the coin box is so filled with coins that the movable memberis blocked by coins against operation. j

The coin box is removable from the main casing of the telephone coincollector and may be constructed along the general lines of the coinreceptacle shown and described in the W. 0. Beck, United States Patent1,121,063.

As shown in Fig. 1 the telephone coin collector 9 comprises a box-likecasing it, a telephone transmitter H, a receiver l2 and a coin gauge I!of conventional form. In the lower portion of the casingv I0 is a coinrefund chute l4 and a door l5. Behind the door i5 as shown in Fig. 2 andwithin the casing in is a removable coin box ili having an aperture llformed in a top cover l8 of the coin box I6. An aperturedretainer i9located within the casing i0 and secured to a frame 20 serves to retainthe coin box IS in required place in the casing Hi. When a coin.

is inserted in the coin gauge l3, the coin falls by gravity through acoin chute 2| shown in dotdash lines in Fig. 8 and into a hopper 22leading to a coin distributor 23 which forms no part of the presentinvention but in which means are provided to direct a coin into the coinrefund chute It or into the coin box IS. A coin directed to the coin boxi6 falls through the frame 20 and the apertured retainer l9 and throughthe aperture ll in the top cover l8 and into the coin box IS. The coinbox IE is large enough to accommodate a large quantity of coins butsince all coins coming into the coin box it enter by way of a relativelysmall aperture I! the coins have atendency to form apile of coins inregister with the aperture l1. If the pile-up of coins is high enough toblock the aperture l1 no more coins can enter the coin box It by way ofthe aperture 11. Subsequently deposited coins will then accumulate inthe coin distributor 22 and the accumulation may be sufllcient toprevent the coin distributor 22 from properly working.

To prevent the undesired piling up of coins in the coin box I 6 amovable member 24 is provided in the coin box I 6 and is operatedtherein to knock down a pile-up of coins. The movable member 24 isoperated to swing downwardly within the coin box I6 each time thetelephone receiver I2 is placed on its receiver hook 2i shown in Figs. 1and 2. The movable member 24 as shown clearly in Fig. 4 is paddle-likein form and comprises a blade portion 22 and a shaft portion 21, theblade portion 28 having a relatively large aperture 28 formed thereinthrough which a coin may pass. The shaft portion 21 a shown in Figs. 6and 7 is apertured at 29 and is hinge supported on the top cover is ofthe coin box I 5, the shaft portion 21 being in the nature of one leafof the hinge, the other leaf 2| being angular in form and secured bymeans of screws 22 or other securing means to the under side of the topcover 18. A pintle 22 extending through the two leaf parts of the hingeholds the parts together and serves as a pivot point for the movablemember 24. The shaft portion 21 has an upwardly extending boss 23 formedthereon as shown in Figs. 2, 4; 6 and 7 on the top of which is securelymounted a button piece 24 arranged to extend upwardly into an aperture25 in the top cover 18. A curved leaf spring 28 secured at one end tothe screw 20 extends downwardly through th aperture 29 and then upwardlyinto engagement with the under surface of the movable member 24 andurges the movable member 24 upwardly toward the under surface of the topcover I 8. The movable member 24 is operated against the action-pf theleaf spring 26 by means of the switchhook25 through a lever system 31comprising a longitudinally movable bar 28 slidably supported'in spacedbrackets 29-29 mounted on the rear wall 40 of the casing 10. The upperend of the longitudinally movable bar 28 is apertured to accommodate oneend portion 4| of a bell crank lever 42 secured to a rotatable shaft 42which when the rotatable shaft 42 is rotated in a counter-clockwisedirection as viewed in Fig. 8 causes the bar 28 to move downwardly inthe casing Ill against the action of a leaf spring 44 mounted in a leafspring pile-up 45 secured by means of mounting screws 46 on a projection41 in the casing Ill. The bell crank lever 42 has an arm portion 48equipped with a pin 48 in frictional engagement with the leaf spring 44.

The rotatable shaft 42 is joumaled in spaced blocks 50. and extendingfrom the rear wall 40 of the casing ill and one end of the shaft 43 ismechanically connected to a lever type receiver hook 25 extendingoutwardly of the casing ill and supported in a bearing 52. The receiverhook 25 extends angularly with respect to the rotatable shaft 42 andoperates in the nature of a crank to rotate the shaft 42 in acounterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 8 and against the action ofthe spring 44 when the receiver 12 is placed on the switch hook 25.

An electrical switch 53 supported on a hinge 54 is located between thelower end 55 of the movable bar 28 and the movable member 24. Theelectrical switch 52 performs two functions one being to transmitdownward movements of the 4 bar 22 to the movable member 24 and theother being to control an alarm device 54 in an alarm system 51energized by a suitable source of current supply 58.

The electrical switch 52 as shown clearly in Figs. 6 and '7 comprises aconducting plate I. insulatingly supported on a leaf member 20 of thehinge 54 the other leaf member 61 of the hinge 54 being secured to theframe 20 in the casing i0. Secured to and extending downwardly from theleaf member 64 is'a shaft 62 which extends through relatively largeapertures 82 and 84, respectively, in the frame 20 and the retainer l8and into register with the aperture 25 in the top cover 18 of the coinbox I 6. The lower end of the shaft 82 rests on the top of the buttonpiece 24 so that downward movement of the shaft 22 will cause a downwardswinging action of the movable member 24 against the action of thecurved leaf spring 26. Insulatingly supported on the conducting plate 59and secured in place by a screw 65 is an L-shaped resilient conductingarm 66 carrying a contact point 61 in spaced relation with a contactpiece 88 on the conducting plate 59. An adjustment screw 69 extendsthrough a tapped hole in the conducting arm 66 and into engagement withthe insulating strip 10 on the conducting plat 58. The adjustment screw69 is equipped with a locknut 1| and may be adjusted to adjust thespacing between the contact point 61 and the contact piece 88. The lowerend 55 of the longitudinally movable bar 38 rests on the upper surfaceof the resilient conducting arm 66. The conducting arm 68 has morestiffness than the curved leaf spring 28.

The switch 52 controls the operation of a signal device 55 which may belocated remote from the telephone coin collector or at some other pointwhere it is desired to have a signal displayed or sounded. Theconducting plate 58 is in electrical connection with one side of thealarm system 51 and the conducting arm 68 is in electrical connectionwith the other side of the alarm system 51 through the insulatedconducting wires 12 and 12 respectively. When the switch 52 is closedthe alarm signal 56 will operate to display or sound an alarm dependingon the type of alarm device employed in the a arm system 51.

It will be seen as shown in Fig. 2 that there is a pile up 14 of coinsin the coin box 18 and that a coin deposited in the telephone coincollector and having passed through the coin distributor 24 may readilyfall through apertures in the frame 20, the retainer IS, a coin guide 12and the aperture [1 in the top cover 18 of the coin box l6 and enter thecoin box [8. The coin after passing through the top cover l8 may readilyfall through the aperture 28 in the movable member 24 and onto the topof the pile up 14, the movable member 24 being in the position it takeswhen the telephone receiver 12 is removed from the switchhook 22. whenthe receiver i2 is placed on the switchhook 25 the weight of thereceiver l2 causes the rotatable shaft 42 to rotate in acounter-clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 8. Rotation of the shaft42 in this direction operates the bell crank lever 42 to move the bar 28downwardly against the action of the leaf spring 44. The bar 28 inmoving downward causes the switch 42 as a whole to swing downwardly onits hinge 54 to the position shown in Fig. 6. In moving to this positionthe shaft 82 box I. the movable member 24 knocks coins 0B the top of thepile up 14- and causes the coins on the top of the pile up 14 to fall toa lower level in the coin box l6. When the receiver I2 is removed fromthe switchhook 25 the leaf spring 44 causes the rotatable shaft 43 torotate in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 8 and causes the bellcrank lever 42 to lift the bar 38 to permit the curved leaf spring 36 tomove the movable member 24 and the switch 53 to the positions shown inFig. 2. If the movable member 24 in its upward movement to the positionshown in Fig. 2 encounters a coin the coin may readily fall through theaperture 28 in the movable member 24.

In the event that coins pile up in the coin box It to such height as toprevent downward movement of the movable member 24 and as shown in Fig.7 and the receiver 12 is placed on the switchhook 25 the bar 38 movingdownwardly under the weigtli of the receiver l2 will downwardly flex theresilient conducting arm 66 of the switch 53 so that the contact point61 engages the contact piece 68 to close the circuit of the alarm system51. The alarm 66 will then operate to indicate that coins are piled uptoo high in the coin box It for required operation of the movable member24.

What is claimed is:

1. A coin collector apparatus comprising a coin box into which aplurality of coins may fall, a movable member supported in said coin boxand operable to move coins in said coin box, a lever system exterior ofsaid coin box and operable to move said movable member and an electricalswitch between said movable member and said lever system and operable totransmit a movement of said lever system to said movable member.

2. A coin collector apparatus comprising a coin box into which aplurality of coins may fall and build up to form a pile of coins, anapertured and movable paddle-like member supported in said coin box andoperable to engage and move coins having a tendency to build up in theform of a pile in said coin box, a longitudinally movable bar exteriorof said coin box to operate said movable member, a pivotally supportedelectrical switch disposed between said longitudinally movable bar andsaid movable member and operable to transmit a movement of saidlongitudinally movable bar to said movable member, relatively movablecontact members in said switch and operable to close against each otherwhen said 1ongitudinally movable bar is moved and a pile-up of coins insaid coin box is too high to be knocked down by said movable paddle-likemember and an alarm system controlled by said electrical switch.

3. A telephone coin collector apparatus comprising a coin box in whichcollected coins may accumulate and build up to form a pile-up of coins,a movable paddle-like member supported in an upper portion of said coinbox and operable to move and knock down coins from the top portion of apile-up of coins in said coin box, a movable switchhook to support atelephone instrument and a system of mechanically movable elementsextending from said switchhook to said paddle-like member to move saidpaddle-like member when said switchhook is operated.

4. A telephone coin collector apparatus comprising a final coin box inwhich collected coins may accumulate and build up in the form of apile-up of coins, a movable paddle-like member supported in said coinbox and operable to knock down within said coin box the topmost coins ofthe coins piling up in said coin box, a movable switchhook to support atelephone instrument, a rotatable shaft in mechanical connection withsaid movable switehhook and a lever system extending from said rotatableshaft to said movable paddle-like member and operable to move saidpaddle-like member to knock down the topmost coins of a pile-up of coinsin said coin box when the telephone instrument is placed on said movableswitchhook.

5. A telephone coin collector apparatus comprising a coin box in whichcollected coins may accumulate and form a pile-up of coins in said coinbox, a movable member pivotally supported in an upper portion of saidcoin box and operable to swing within said coin box and knock down theuppermost coins in a pile-up of coins in said coin box, a movableswitchhook to removably support a telephone instrument, said switchhookbeing movable under the weight of the telephone instrument, alongitudinally movable bar operated by means of said switchhook, apivotally supported electrical switch extending between said bar andsaid movable member, said switch being movable as a whole to transmit amovement of said bar to said movable member, a resilient contact in saidswitch and engaged by said longitudinally movable bar, a relativelyfixed contact in said switch and spaced from said resilient contact andan electrical alarm system connected to said switch, said resilientcontact being operable to move against said fixed contact to close saidelectrical alarm system when said longitudinally movable bar is movedand said movable member in said coin box is held against movement by apile-up of coins in said coin box.

OSCAR A. SHANN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

